What should be considered when designing curricula, what does inclusivity in education mean and what solutions work in other countries' education systems? Read the summary of the conference Education for the Future. Challenges to Curriculum Design and Effective Implementation'.
The international event on curricula and education for the future is over. The OECD Global Forum conference was organised by the Educational Research Institute in cooperation with the OECD and the Ministry of National Education. For two days, on December 16-17 in Warsaw, international experts in the field of education had the opportunity to meet and talk about effective teaching systems and proven methods for improving learning outcomes. The conference included workshops, discussions and talks by invited guests.
On the first day of the event, participants met in person in Warsaw for practical workshops.
The event was opened by Dr. Tomasz Gajderowicz, Deputy Director of the Educational Research Institute, who noted the most engaging issues in education today.
Jennifer Valcke, curriculum designer and researcher at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, also spoke. During her talk entitled ‘Global Perspectives on Education: Shaping Future-Ready Graduates’, she stressed that education is a human act, it takes time, many attempts and its inherent characteristic is error, required to learn lessons. Her presentation also pointed out that the assumptions we have about students affect our expectations of them, highlighting the critical role of the teacher-student relationship and the importance of effective communication in this relationship.
In preparation for the workshops and outlining the Polish educational context, Agnieszka Szymczak, a leading research and analysis expert at IBE, presented the plans for educational reform in Poland and presented the Graduate Profile.
Participants on the first day of the conference then took part in workshops on a variety of topics, organised in several locations in the capital. Workshop groups worked in schools and educational institutions, delving into issues relevant to contemporary education in the world, while learning about Polish solutions.
Key conclusions from the workshops:
- The voice of students must be taken into account in the development of core curricula
It is also including students in the process of teacher training, to listen to how and what they would like to learn.
- Do not forget that education should be based on experimentation, it is worth looking for new solutions.
- Pupils with special educational needs need motivation to learn, e.g., stories of people who have achieved success facing similar difficulties.
- The use of artificial intelligence in school is inevitable, students should learn about its proper use from teachers.
Workshop coverage:
Workshop topics included:
- Engaging in action: schools supporting student empowerment (led by Marcin Marciniak-Mierzejewski IBE)
- Teacher development: a holistic approach to professional support (led by Ewa Frołow – IBE, Joanna Biskup – IBE, Dorota Obidniak – ZNP, Michał Rostworowski)
- Vocational education and training in the face of contemporary challenges (led by Maciej Tauber – IBE)
- Careers without barriers: diversity counselling (led by Karolina Malinowska – IBE, Tomasz Kasprzak – IBE, Bernadetta Czerkawska – IBE)
- Effective pedagogical methods to support multilingual and multicultural students (led by Beata Papuda-Dolińska – IBE, Anna Błaszczak – IBE)
- Digitalisation and artificial intelligence in vocational schools (led by Ziemowit Socha – IBE)
On the second day of the conference, December 17, the plenary sessions of the event were held.
The meeting was opened by the Minister of Education Barbara Nowacka and Dr. Maciej Jakubowski, Director of the Educational Research Institute.
Poland actively draws on the best international educational practices while sharing its own experience. In 2026, we plan to implement an educational reform that will create space for modern and creative learning plans. We believe that knowledge sharing is the key to success.
We want to talk about what the challenges are when it comes to implementing reforms in other countries. We don't just want to hear about big ideas, we want to understand them in practice so that actual change can take place.
Speakers and contributions:
- Kristina Kallas, Minister of Education and Research of the Republic of Estonia – ‘Rethinking Education. Estonia's Curriculum Reforms, Digitalisation, AI and Beyond', presented educational activities undertaken in Estonia, the high performance of Estonian students and the challenges facing Estonian education
- Andreas Schleicher, Director of Education and Skills at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) – ‘21st Century Curriculum Design and Implementation: International Perspectives’
- Tim Oates, Group Director of Research and Assessment Development at Cambridge Assessment. ‘Closing the Gap Between Policy and Practice: Policy-Making by the State and Curriculum-Making by Teachers’
- Tomasz Gajderowicz, Deputy Director, Educational Research Institute. ‘Turning Big Ideas into Action: Integrating Competencies into Curricula – Poland's Case Study’.
- João Costa, Director of the European Agency for the Development of Special and Inclusive Education. ‘Towards New Indicators for Quality Education’
- Brian MacGiollaphádraig, Deputy Chief Inspector, Department of Education, Ireland. ‘Exploring Inclusion in the Irish Context’
- Jennifer Valcke, Curriculum Designer and researcher at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden. ‘Curriculum Innovation: Building Inclusive Pathways for Lifelong Learning’.
- Tim Surma, Head of the Centre for Learning and Teaching at Thomas More University of Applied Sciences, Belgium. "Developing Curriculum for Deep Thinking. The Knowledge Revival"
- Peter Fagerström, Head of the Digital Education Accelerator at the European Commission's European Centre for Digital Education, member of the UNESCO Global Education Coalition. ‘Innovating the Future of European Education’